Vehicle control apparatus

ABSTRACT

A vehicle control apparatus  3  according to an embodiment of the present invention is incorporated in a vehicle equipped with an engine  1  that is configured such that a lubricating oil and a working oil are circulated inside the engine  1  by an oil pump  9  driven by a crankshaft  1   a . An oil pressure monitoring function performed by the vehicle control apparatus  3  maintains a notification operation for an oil pressure anomaly, even when the engine  1  is automatically shut down by an idle-stop function during execution of the notification operation.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a vehicle control apparatus of avehicle equipped with an engine in which a lubricating oil and a workingoil are circulated by an oil pump driven by a crankshaft, and inparticular to an improvement in an oil pressure monitoring function.

BACKGROUND ART

Some conventional vehicles are equipped with an idle-stop function (oralso called an eco-run function) in order to suppress the amount of fuelconsumed and reduce the amount of exhaust gas emitted (see, for example,Patent Literature 1).

Such an idle-stop function is provided, for example, in an ordinaryvehicle equipped with a gasoline engine, a diesel engine or the like, toautomatically shut down an engine when the vehicle temporarily stopsfor, for example, a traffic light or another reason (when a prescribedautomatic shutdown condition is satisfied) and restart the engine whenthe vehicle then starts off (when a prescribed restart condition issatisfied).

A proposal has also been conceived to incorporate an oil pressuremonitoring function that performs a notification operation for an oilpressure anomaly upon detection of an anomaly such as engine oilpressure dropping to or below a prescribed level (see, for example,Patent Literature 1 and Patent Literature 2).

In the case of a configuration in which an oil pump that circulates alubricating oil and a working oil inside an engine is driven by acrankshaft, the oil pressure discharged from the oil pump is detected,and the presence or absence of an oil pressure anomaly is determineddepending on whether or not the detected value is not greater than aprescribed threshold value. Accordingly, because the oil pump is notdriven during engine shutdown, no engine oil pressure is generated.

When such an oil pressure monitoring function is applied to an enginethat is mounted on a vehicle that has the above-mentioned idle-stopfunction, a situation as described below can occur.

For example, when the engine is automatically shut down by the idle-stopfunction, because the oil pump is driven by the crankshaft, no engineoil pressure is generated. Therefore, even when the oil pressure isnormal immediately before the engine shutdown, there is a possibilitythat it may be determined that an oil pressure anomaly has occurred anda notification operation for an oil pressure anomaly may be performed.In this case, it is a mistake to make an oil pressure anomalynotification.

In contrast, according to the conventional example of Patent Literature1, a configuration is adopted in which the presence or absence of ananomaly in the working oil is monitored only during operation of theengine. As such, when an oil pressure anomaly is found, an oil pressurewarning lamp is turned on with a sound only during operation of theengine, and the alarm operation is stopped when the engine isautomatically shut down in that state.

In this case, even when an alarm operation is performed upon detectionof an oil pressure anomaly during operation of the engine, if the engineis then automatically shut down, the alarm operation is stopped.

CITATION LIST Patent Literature [PTL 1]

JP H4-14301

[PTL 2]

JP 2001-140619A

SUMMARY OF INVENTION Technical Problem

With the conventional example of Patent Literature 1, for example, whena warning operation is performed upon detection of an oil pressureanomaly during operation of the engine, if the engine is automaticallyshut down, the notification operation for the oil pressure anomaly isstopped. Consequently, not only can the driver not be sure of theoccurrence of an oil pressure anomaly, but also it may cause the driverto suspect that a malfunction might have occurred in the oil pressureanomaly monitoring system. Thus, the conventional example of PatentLiterature 1 might confuse the driver, so it can be said that it cannotaccurately transmit information regarding an oil pressure anomaly.

Furthermore, the conventional example of Patent Literature 1 employs aconfiguration that turns on an oil pressure warning lamp with a soundused when the driver forgets to engage the parking brake to compensatefor stopping an alarm operation for an oil pressure anomaly duringautomatic shutdown of the engine, but such a configuration might furtherconfuse the driver.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a vehicle controlapparatus that has an idle-stop function that enables automatic shutdownand restart of an engine and an oil pressure monitoring function thatperforms a notification operation for an oil pressure anomaly when anoil pressure anomaly is detected during operation of the engine, whereinit is possible to accurately transmit information regarding an oilpressure anomaly to the driver even when the engine is automaticallyshut down by the idle-stop function while a notification operation isperformed upon the occurrence of an oil pressure anomaly duringoperation of the engine.

Solution to Problem

The present invention is a vehicle control apparatus of a vehicleequipped with an engine in which a lubricating oil and a working oil arecirculated by an oil pump driven by a crankshaft, the apparatusincluding: an idle-stop function that automatically shuts down theengine when a prescribed automatic shutdown condition is satisfied, andrestarts the automatically shut-down engine when a prescribed restartcondition is satisfied; and an oil pressure monitoring function thatperforms a notification operation for an oil pressure anomaly upondetection of an oil pressure anomaly during operation of the engine, theoil pressure monitoring function maintaining the notification operationeven when the engine is automatically shut down by the idle-stopfunction during execution of the notification operation.

In an engine as described above, when the engine is shut down, no oilpressure is generated because the oil pump is not driven. Accordingly,when oil pressure monitoring is performed while the engine isautomatically shut down by the idle-stop function, an oil pressureanomaly is detected, so it can be said that it is meaningless todetermine an oil pressure anomaly during the automatic shutdown of theengine. Taking this into consideration, the present inventor found thatit is preferable to monitor oil pressure substantially only duringoperation of the engine.

According to the above-described configuration of the present inventionaccomplished by taking such a finding into consideration, a notificationoperation for an oil pressure anomaly is performed upon detection of ananomaly in the oil pressure of an engine during operation of the engine,but even if the engine is automatically shut down by an idle-stopfunction during execution of the notification operation, thenotification operation is deliberately maintained.

With such a configuration, it is possible to give the driver confidencethat the notification operation for an oil pressure anomaly is not amistake. Consequently, unlike the conventional example, the concern thatthe driver may be confused by interruption of the notification operationwhen the engine is automatically shut down is eliminated.

In addition, in the vehicle control apparatus configured as describedabove, it is preferable that the oil pressure monitoring functionincludes: an oil pressure determination means for determining thepresence or absence of an anomaly such as an oil pressure dropping to orbelow a prescribed level based on an output from an oil pressuredetecting element during operation of the engine; a notificationexecuting means for performing the notification operation for an oilpressure anomaly and generating a notification operation executionhistory when the oil pressure determination means has determined that anoil pressure anomaly is present; and a notification managing means for,when the engine is automatically shut down by the idle-stop function,checking for the presence or absence of the execution history andmaintaining the state of the notification operation from before theautomatic shutdown.

Preferably, the oil pressure monitoring function includes a means fordetermining the presence or absence of an anomaly such as an oilpressure dropping to or below a prescribed level based on the outputfrom an oil pressure detecting element during operation of the engine; ameans for, when the aforementioned means has determined that an oilpressure anomaly is present, performing a notification operation for theoil pressure anomaly and generating a notification operation executionhistory; and a means for, when the engine is automatically shut down bythe idle-stop function, maintaining the state of the notificationoperation from before the automatic shutdown.

In this configuration, as a specific means for implementing the oilpressure monitoring function, an oil pressure determining means, anotification executing means and a notification managing means arespecified, whereby the configuration of the vehicle control apparatusbecomes clear.

ADVANTAGEOUS EFFECTS OF INVENTION

According to the vehicle control apparatus of the present invention, itbecomes possible to accurately transmit information regarding an oilpressure anomaly to the driver even when the engine is automaticallyshut down by the idle-stop function during execution of a notificationoperation upon the occurrence of an oil pressure anomaly duringoperation of the engine, whereby unnecessary anxiety for the driver isavoided.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an overview of a configuration of the powertrain of a vehiclein which a vehicle control apparatus according to the present inventionis used.

FIG. 2 is an overview of a configuration of the vehicle controlapparatus shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart used to illustrate an operation of an oil pressuremonitoring function of the vehicle control apparatus shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a time chart used to illustrate an operation performed whenthe oil pressure is normal in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a time chart used to illustrate an operation performed whenthe oil pressure is abnormal in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a time chart used to illustrate an operation performed whenthe oil pressure is abnormal in a comparative example.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST

-   1 Engine-   1 a Engine Crankshaft-   3 Control Apparatus-   5 Electronic Control Throttle-   6 Injector-   7 Igniter-   8 Starter Motor-   9 Engine Oil Pump-   11 Accelerator Pedal-   12 Shift Lever-   13 Foot Brake Pedal-   15 Oil Pressure Warning Lamp-   71 Engine Revolution Sensor-   72 Vehicle Speed Sensor-   73 Accelerator Opening Degree Sensor-   74 Shift Position Sensor-   75 Foot Brake Switch (Oil Pressure Detecting Element)-   76 Oil Pressure Switch

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described indetail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIGS. 1 to 6 show an embodiment of the present invention. Beforedescribing an embodiment to which a feature of the present invention isapplied, an overview of a configuration of the drivetrain of a vehicleto which the present invention is applied will be described withreference to FIG. 1.

The drivetrain includes an engine 1 as a motive power source, anautomatic transmission 2 and a vehicle control apparatus 3.

The engine 1 is, for example, a gasoline engine in which an air-fuelmixture of intake air adjusted by an electronic control throttle 5 andfuel injected from an injector 6 mixed at an appropriate ratio issupplied to a combustion chamber, and is burnt with a spark plug ignitedby an igniter 7, thereby generating rotational power. The engine 1 maybe a diesel engine.

To start the engine 1, the engine 1 is cranked by rotationally driving aflywheel (not shown) that is connected to a crankshaft 1 a by means of astarter motor 8 as a starting apparatus. An oil pump 9 that circulates alubricating oil and a working oil inside the engine 1 is configured tobe driven by the crankshaft 1 a.

Although not shown in detail in the drawing, the electronic controlthrottle 5 is configured to adjust the opening degree of a throttlevalve that is disposed in an intake manifold as appropriate by driving athrottle motor based on the amount of accelerator pedal depression(accelerator opening degree) of an accelerator pedal 11 and a requisitecondition for control.

The automatic transmission 2 changes the speed of rotational powergenerated by the engine 1 as appropriate and outputs the power to adriving system, and has a generally known configuration that includes atorque converter, a transmission mechanism unit, an oil pressure controlapparatus, and so on. The transmission mechanism unit may be any one ofa planetary gear mechanism, a gear train mechanism that has a pluralityof gears, a continuously variable transmission mechanism such as a CVT,and the like.

The vehicle control apparatus 3 includes a generally known engine ECU(Electronic Control Unit) 31, a transmission ECU 32, an idle-stop ECU33, and the like, and is configured to collectively control variousoperations, such as various control operations for operating the engine1 and transmission control operations of the automatic transmission 2,based on the information input from various detection elements.

The ECUs 31 to 33 are each configured to include a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, abackup RAM, and the like, and are capable of transmitting and receivingstored data to and from each other as necessary. For the transmissionand reception of such data, for example, a CAN (Controller Area Network)is used.

The ROM stores various control programs, maps that are referred to whenexecuting such control programs, and the like. The CPU executescomputational processes based on various control programs and mapsstored in the ROM. The RAM is a memory that temporarily stores theresults of computation by the CPU, information input from variousdetection means, and the like. The backup RAM is a non-volatile memorythat stores various data to be stored when the engine 1 is shut down orthe like.

The detection elements for inputting information into the vehiclecontrol apparatus 3 include, at least, as shown in FIG. 2, an enginerevolution sensor 71, a vehicle speed sensor 72, an accelerator openingdegree sensor 73, a shift position sensor 74, a foot brake switch 75, anoil pressure switch 76 as an oil pressure detecting element, 76, and soon.

The engine revolution sensor 71 detects the number of revolutions of theengine 1, the vehicle speed sensor 72 detects the speed of the vehicle,and the accelerator opening degree sensor 73 detects the opening degreeof the accelerator pedal 11. The shift position sensor 74 detects theshift position selected by a shift lever 12 of the automatictransmission 2. The foot brake switch 75 detects whether or not a footbrake pedal 13 has been operated by the driver of the vehicle. The oilpressure switch 76 is turned on and off based on whether or not the oilpressure discharged from the oil pump 9 is not greater than a prescribedthreshold value.

Such a vehicle control apparatus 3 is configured to execute at least anidle-stop function, and also to execute an oil pressure monitoringfunction.

The idle-stop function is basically the same as that of a known method,specifically, a function that automatically shuts down the engine 1 whena prescribed automatic shutdown condition is satisfied, and restarts theengine 1 that was automatically shut down when a prescribed restartcondition is satisfied, which is primarily controlled by the idle-stopECU 33.

The automatic shutdown condition of the engine 1 includes, for example,vehicle speed, accelerator opening degree, the state of a foot brake,and the like, and if it is determined, based on the outputs from, forexample, the vehicle speed sensor 72, the accelerator opening degreesensor 73 and the foot brake switch 75, that the vehicle speed is zero,the accelerator is off, and the foot brake is on, the idle-stop ECU 33determines that an automatic shutdown condition has been satisfied, andtransmits a shutdown instruction to the engine ECU 31 to forcibly shutdown the fuel injection system, ignition system and the like of theengine 1 and to thereby shut down the operation of the engine 1.

On the other hand, the restart condition of the engine 1 includes theshift position, the state of a foot brake, or the like, and if it isdetermined, based on the outputs from the shift position sensor 74 andthe foot brake switch 75, that the shift position is in a drive (D)range or the foot brake switch 75 is off, the idle-stop ECU 33determines that a restart condition has been satisfied, and transmits arestart instruction to the engine ECU 31 to drive the starter motor 8and to thereby rotate (crank) the crankshaft 1 a of the engine 1 anddrive the fuel injection system, ignition system and the like of theengine 1 in response to the timing of the cranking so as to restart theoperation of the engine 1.

The oil pressure monitoring function is a function that causes the oilpressure warning lamp 15 as an oil pressure anomaly notification elementto perform a notification operation if an oil pressure anomaly isdetected during operation of the engine 1, which is primarily controlledby, for example, the engine ECU 31. The oil pressure monitoring functioncan be incorporated as, for example, a diagnostic function bydiagnostics, and controlled by a dedicated ECU.

The oil pressure warning lamp 15 is disposed, for example, on a meterpanel or the like installed inside the vehicle compartment. However,instead of the oil pressure warning lamp 15, it is also possible to, forexample, use an alarm buzzer, or display a message, a mark or the likethat indicates an oil pressure anomaly on a message display unitprovided in the meter panel or the like installed inside the vehiclecompartment.

An embodiment to which a feature of the present invention is appliedwill be described in detail.

That is, in the present embodiment, the oil pressure monitoring functionis devised to perform a process of substantially detecting an oilpressure anomaly only during operation of the engine 1 and, when theengine 1 is automatically shut down, for example, maintain anotification operation for an oil pressure anomaly that was performedbefore the automatic shutdown of the engine 1.

When, for example, a notification operation for an oil pressure anomalyhas been performed before the engine 1 is automatically shut down by theidle-stop function, the notification operation is maintained, but when anotification operation for an oil pressure anomaly has not beenperformed before the engine 1 is automatically shut down, the state inwhich no notification operation is performed is maintained.

Hereinafter, an operation performed by the oil pressure monitoringfunction will be described with reference to a flowchart shown in FIG.3.

The process of the flowchart is entered at a regular time interval. InStep S1, it is determined whether or not the engine 1 is currently inoperation. Such a determination can be made based on, for example, thestate of an ignition switch (not shown) and the output from the enginerevolution sensor 71. In short, the expression “during operation of theengine” refers to an idling state and a running state.

Here, if the engine 1 is in operation, a positive determination is madein Step S1, and the procedure flows through a flow spanning from Step S2to Step S6, whereas if the engine 1 is determined not to be inoperation, a negative determination is made in Step S1, and theprocedure flows through a flow including Steps S11 and 12.

In Step S2, it is determined whether or not an anomaly is present in theoil pressure. Such a determination can be made by checking whether theoil pressure switch 76 is on or off. The oil pressure switch 76 is offwhen the oil pressure discharged from the oil pump 9 is within aprescribed appropriate range and is on when the oil pressure is outsidethe appropriate range.

Here, if the oil pressure switch 76 is off, it indicates that the oilpressure is normal, so a negative determination is made in Step S2 and,then in Step S3, an oil pressure anomaly flag is set to “0”.Subsequently, in Step S4, the oil pressure warning lamp 15 is turnedoff, and the procedure exits the flowchart.

If, on the other hand, the oil pressure switch 76 is on, it indicatesthat the oil pressure is abnormal, so a positive determination is madein Step S2, and in Step S5, the oil pressure anomaly flag is set to “1”.Subsequently, in Step S6, the oil pressure warning lamp 15 is turned on,and the procedure exits the flowchart.

In Step S11, it is determined whether or not the shutdown of the engine1 is an automatic shutdown period of the engine 1 caused by theidle-stop function. Such a determination can be made by referring to,for example, the state of an automatic shutdown flag of the idle-stopECU 33. For example, the automatic shutdown flag is set to “1” when theengine 1 is automatically shut down by the idle-stop function and is setto “0” when the engine 1 is restarted.

Here, if the shutdown of the engine 1 is not an automatic shutdowncaused by the idle-stop function, a negative determination is made inStep S11, and the procedure exits the flowchart. However, if theshutdown of the engine 1 is carried out by the idle-stop function, apositive determination is made in Step S11, and the procedure goes tothe next step, Step S12.

In Step S12, it is determined whether or not the oil pressure anomalyflag is “1”. That is, in this step, whether or not a notificationoperation for an oil pressure anomaly was performed before the automaticshutdown of the engine 1 is checked.

Here, if the oil pressure anomaly flag is “0”, or in other words, nonotification operation for an oil pressure anomaly was performed beforethe automatic shutdown of the engine 1, a negative determination is madein Step S12, and the procedure goes to Step S4, where the state of theoil pressure warning lamp 15 being turned off is maintained, and theprocedure exits the flowchart.

If, however, the oil pressure anomaly flag is “1”, or in other words, anotification operation for an oil pressure anomaly was performed beforethe automatic shutdown of the engine 1, a positive determination is madein Step S12, and the procedure goes to Step S6, where the state of theoil pressure warning lamp 15 being turned on is maintained, and theprocedure exits the flowchart.

Next, in connection to the description of the operation, therelationship between the automatic shutdown caused by the idle-stopfunction in response to the running state of the vehicle and thepresence or absence of an oil pressure anomaly will be described withreference to the time charts shown in FIGS. 4 to 6.

FIG. 4 is a time chart used to illustrate an operation performed whenthe oil pressure is normal in the present embodiment. FIG. 5 is a timechart used to illustrate an operation performed when the oil pressure isabnormal in the present embodiment. FIG. 6 is a time chart used toillustrate an operation performed when the oil pressure is abnormal in acomparative example. In these time charts, (a) represents the number ofrevolutions of the engine, (b) represents the output from the oilpressure switch 76, and (c) represents the state of the oil pressurewarning lamp 15.

(1) First, when the oil pressure of the engine 1 is normal in a periodin which the engine 1 is in operation (a period from time t0 to time t1in FIG. 4), the output from the oil pressure switch 76 is off as shownin FIG. 4( b), and the oil pressure warning lamp 15 is off as shown inFIG. 4( c).

Then, if the engine 1 is automatically shut down by the idle-stopfunction at time t1 of FIG. 4, the output from the oil pressure switch76 is turned on as shown in FIG. 4( b). This indicates that the oilpressure switch 76 is operating normally by reason of the oil pump 9becoming inoperative because of the automatic shutdown of the engine 1.

Although the oil pressure switch 76 is on during the automatic shutdownof the engine 1 as shown in FIG. 4( b), such automatic shutdown iscontrolled irrespective of the output from the oil pressure switch 76 asdescribed above, so the state of the oil pressure warning lamp 15, thatis, the state thereof being off is maintained as shown in FIG. 4( c).

Then, if the engine 1 is restarted by the idle-stop function at time t2of FIG. 4, the output from the oil pressure switch 76 is turned off asshown in FIG. 4( b), and the oil pressure warning lamp 15 remains off asshown in FIG. 4( c).

In this manner, when the oil pressure of the engine 1 is normal, thestate of the oil pressure warning lamp 15 being off is maintained evenif the engine 1 is automatically shut down by the idle-stop function.

(2) Next, it is assumed that the operation of the engine 1 is started attime t0 of FIG. 5 and, after that, the oil pressure of the engine 1 hasdropped below a prescribed appropriate range at time tn of FIG. 5 duringoperation of the engine 1. In such a case, the output from the oilpressure switch 76 is turned on at time tn as shown in FIG. 5( b) and,therefore, the oil pressure warning lamp 15 is turned on as shown inFIG. 5( c).

In this state, if the engine 1 is automatically shut down by theidle-stop function at time t1 of FIG. 5, the output from the oilpressure switch 76 is maintained in the on state as shown in FIG. 5( b).

In this case as well, the state of the oil pressure warning lamp 15before the automatic shutdown of the engine 1, that is, the statethereof being on is maintained as shown in FIG. 5( c) during automaticshutdown because such automatic shutdown is controlled irrespective ofthe output from the oil pressure switch 76 a as described above.

Then, if the oil pressure anomaly is still present when the engine 1 isrestarted by the idle-stop function at time t2 of FIG. 5, the outputfrom the oil pressure switch 76 is maintained in the on state as shownin FIG. 5( b), and the oil pressure warning lamp 15 remains on as shownin FIG. 5( c).

In this manner, when an oil pressure anomaly occurs during operation ofthe engine 1, the oil pressure warning lamp 15 is turned on, and even ifthe engine 1 is then automatically shut down by the idle-stop function,the state of the oil pressure warning lamp 15 being on is maintained.

(3) For reference, as a comparative example, the timing of automaticshutdown of the engine 1 by the idle-stop function and the output stateof the oil pressure switch 76 will be described with reference to FIG. 6by applying the same situation as that described in (2) above.

It is assumed in this case that the operation of the engine 1 is startedat time t0 of FIG. 6 and then, the oil pressure of the engine 1 hasdropped below a prescribed appropriate range at time tn of FIG. 6 duringoperation of the engine 1. In such a case, the output from the oilpressure switch 76 is turned on at time tn as shown in FIG. 6( b) and,therefore, the oil pressure warning lamp 15 is turned on as shown inFIG. 6( c).

In this state, if the engine 1 is automatically shut down by theidle-stop function at time t1 of FIG. 6, although the output from theoil pressure switch 76 is maintained in the on state as shown in FIG. 6(b), such automatic shutdown is controlled regardless of the output fromthe oil pressure switch 76 and the oil pressure warning lamp 15 isturned off as shown in FIG. 6( c) during automatic shutdown of theengine 1.

Then, if the oil pressure anomaly is still present when the engine 1 isrestarted by the idle-stop function at time t2 of FIG. 6, the outputfrom the oil pressure switch 76 is maintained in the on state as shownin FIG. 6( b), so the oil pressure warning lamp 15 is turned on as shownin FIG. 6( c).

As described, in the comparative example, if an oil pressure anomalyoccurs during operation of the engine 1, the oil pressure warning lamp15 is turned on, but if the engine 1 is automatically shut down by theidle-stop function, the oil pressure warning lamp 15 is turned off.Accordingly, the driver starts to question whether the oil pressureanomaly alarm is true, so this configuration is not preferable.

As described thus far, according to the present embodiment, when ananomaly, such as a drop in the oil pressure of the engine 1, is detectedduring operation of the engine 1, a notification operation for an oilpressure anomaly is performed and, even if the engine 1 is automaticallyshut down by the idle-stop function during execution of the notificationoperation, the notification operation is deliberately maintained.

With this configuration, it is possible to give the driver confidencethat the notification operation for an oil pressure anomaly is not amistake. Consequently, unlike the conventional example, the concern thatthe driver may be confused by the interruption of the notificationoperation when the engine is automatically shut down is eliminated.

This provides an advantage in providing a vehicle with driver usability,in that it is possible to eliminate the need for the driver to gainsystematic knowledge about a notification operation for an oil pressureanomaly in advance.

The above embodiment has been described, as an example, in the contextof a vehicle that employs only an engine 1 as a motive power source, butthe present invention is also applicable to a hybrid vehicle not shownherein that incorporates a motor in addition to an engine as motivepower sources.

That is, generally, hybrid vehicles have an idle-stop function (anautomatic engine shutdown and restart function), so it is possible toincorporate the oil pressure monitoring function disclosed in the aboveembodiment of the present invention. In this case, the same actions andeffects as those of the above embodiment can be obtained.

Also, in the above embodiment, a configuration is adopted in which theoil pressure of the engine 1 is detected with the oil pressure switch 76and an on or off signal is output, but it is also possible to adopt aconfiguration in which, for example, an oil pressure sensor is used, andthe output from the oil pressure sensor is compared with a prescribedthreshold value by an appropriate ECU so as to determine whether the oilpressure is normal or abnormal.

The present invention may be embodied in various other forms withoutdeparting from the gist or essential characteristics thereof. Therefore,the embodiment described above is to be considered in all respects asillustrative and not limiting. The scope of the invention is indicatedby the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and allmodifications or changes that come within the meaning and range ofequivalency of the claims are intended to be embraced therein.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

With the vehicle control apparatus of the present invention, even if theengine is automatically shutdown by an idle-stop function duringexecution of a notification operation performed upon the occurrence ofan oil pressure anomaly during operation of the engine, it is possibleto accurately transmit information on the oil pressure anomaly to thedriver. Accordingly, the vehicle control apparatus of the presentinvention is useful in a vehicle that has an idle-stop function, suchas, for example, a vehicle designed to reduce the amount of fuelconsumed and lower the amount of exhaust gas emitted such as a hybridvehicle.

1. A vehicle control apparatus of a vehicle equipped with an engine inwhich a lubricating oil and a working oil are circulated by an oil pumpdriven by a crankshaft, the apparatus comprising: an idle-stop functionthat automatically shuts down the engine when a prescribed automaticshutdown condition is satisfied, and restarts the automaticallyshut-down engine when a prescribed restart condition is satisfied; andan oil pressure monitoring function that performs a notificationoperation for an oil pressure anomaly upon detection of an oil pressureanomaly during operation of the engine, the oil pressure monitoringfunction maintaining the notification operation even when the engine isautomatically shut down by the idle-stop function during execution ofthe notification operation.
 2. The vehicle control apparatus accordingto claim 1, wherein the oil pressure monitoring function comprises: anoil pressure determination means for determining the presence or absenceof an anomaly such as an oil pressure dropping to or below a prescribedlevel based on an output from an oil pressure detecting element duringoperation of the engine; a notification executing means for performingthe notification operation for an oil pressure anomaly and generating anotification operation execution history when the oil pressuredetermination means has determined that an oil pressure anomaly ispresent; and a notification managing means for, when the engine isautomatically shut down by the idle-stop function, checking for thepresence or absence of the execution history and maintaining the stateof the notification operation from before the automatic shutdown.